Descending palatine artery

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Artery: Descending palatine artery
Plan of branches of internal maxillary artery. ("Desc. pal." visible in upper right.)
Plan of branches of internal maxillary artery. (Artery not labeled, but region is visible.)
Latin arteria palatina descendens
Gray's subject #144 562
Supplies hard palate, soft palate
Source maxillary artery (3rd part)   
Branches greater palatine artery, lesser palatine arteries
Dorlands
/ Elsevier    		 a_61/12155339

The descending palatine artery is an artery of the head.

Contents

[edit] Course

It descends through the pterygopalatine canal with the anterior palatine branch of the sphenopalatine ganglion, and, emerging from the greater palatine foramen, runs forward in a groove on the medial side of the alveolar border of the hard palate to the incisive canal; the terminal branch of the artery passes upward through this canal to anastomose with the sphenopalatine artery.

[edit] Branches

Branches are distributed to the gums, the palatine glands, and the mucous membrane of the roof of the mouth; while in the pterygopalatine canal it gives off twigs which descend in the lesser palatine canals to supply the soft palate and palatine tonsil, anastomosing with the ascending palatine artery.

According to Terminologia Anatomica, the descending palatine artery branches into the greater palatine artery and lesser palatine arteries.

[edit] See also

[edit] Additional images

Base of skull. Inferior surface.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

This article was originally based on an entry from a public domain edition of Gray's Anatomy. As such, some of the information contained herein may be outdated. Please edit the article if this is the case, and feel free to remove this notice when it is no longer relevant.

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List of arteries of head and neck
CC/EC
cervical branches (ascending palatine, tonsillar, submental, glandular) - facial branches (inferior labial, superior labial/nasal septum, lateral nasal, angular)
CC/IC
orbital group: posterior ethmoidal - anterior ethmoidal (anterior septal, anterior lateral nasal, anterior meningeal) - lacrimal (lateral palpebral) - medial palpebral - terminal (supraorbital, supratrochlear, dorsal nasal)
ocular group: central retinal - ciliary (short posterior, long posterior, anterior) - hypophysial (superior, inferior)
SC
meningeal - spinal (posterior, anterior) - cerebellar (PICA)
basilar: pontine - labyrinthine - cerebellar (AICA, SCA) - cerebral (PCA)